Converse Debuts Missoni Sneaker Collaboration
Missoni and Converse have done it again: they’ve released a collaboration of must-have sneakers. But this time there’s a difference.
The venerable Italian design house, famous for its zigzag prints, and the American sneaker company might seem a weird partnership at first glance. But they’ve been collaborating on limited-edition sneakers since 2010.
And this year, they’ve going big, with an entire collaborative collection.
It’s an intelligent combination. Missoni is most famous for its visuals: pastel and monochrome prints, usually on elaborate knits. And Converse’s Chuck Taylors are all about the shape. So bringing them together meant not stepping on anybody’s toes.
The results have something for everybody. Missoni devotees will snap up the more classic Hi-Tops in traditional multicolour zigzags, while less fanatical sneaker fans can choose from a more streamlined blue or monochrome palette.
Converse sneakers have to be one of the most customised pieces of clothing in history. From skater kids scribbling on the canvas sides to Maison Martin Margiela and Marimekko, they’ve been blank canvases – literally – since they first debuted.
The brand has also tried its hand at partnerships on the music scene, encouraging artists like Kimbra, Pharrell, Santigold and Gorillaz to collaborate on tracks exclusive to Converse.
As mash-ups go, though, we think Missoni x Converse has to be one of our cult favourites.
Image: Missoni x Converse collection.
Finalists In DHL Competition Announced
It’s been a charmed few years for Australian designers Christopher Esber, Michael Lo Sordo and Karla Spetic.
First they all garnered high accolades in the International Woolmark Prize – Esber won the regional prize in 2013, and Spetic and Lo Sordo were regional finalists this year – and now they’re all in the running for the DHL Fashion Export Scholarship.
As Rescu. reported when the competition began, the DHL Scholarship focusses on the gritty business behind the glamour of fashion: the expense of shipping pieces overseas to be sold.
It can be tough and very expensive, which is why shipping company DHL introduced their Fashion Scholarship, to give worthy young established designers a helping hand.
Lo Sordo, Spetic and Esber are now in the running for $10,000 worth of international freight and a meeting with an international buyer.
“Our finalists have enormous export potential,” said the head of DHL, “and we are delighted that the DHL Fashion Export Scholarship can provide a launch platform for these up-and-coming brands.”
We Are Handsome and Bec & Bridge have been previous winners – but Lo Sordo might not need as much help as the other two. He’s recently nabbed Net-a-Porter as a stockist, one of the biggest coups you can get.
Who do you think should win the 2014 DHL Scholarship?
Image: Spetic, Lo Sordo and Esber.
Agent Provocateur’s New Penelope Cruz-Directed Film Is “Sexiest Ever”
When Penelope Cruz was announced as the creative director of L’Agent by Agent Provocateur, we knew we were in for a spectacle.
But the latest campaign for the AW collection is getting accolades for being one of the sexiest yet.
Vogue calls it ‘The Raciest Lingerie Film Ever’ – but it took a lot of work to get it that way.
Featuring models dancing in a desert (it’s a mirage fantasy for a dehydrated male model, of course), the set was choreographed by Tracy Anderson, the famous trainer who works with Gwyneth Paltrow.
And Cruz herself, who directed the video as well as designing the pieces of lingerie with sister Monica, makes an appearance as a devil-may-care mysterious figure.
But what of the lingerie itself?
Colour appears to rule in the L’Agent collection – there’s even a scarlet leopard print set – but the shapes are purely traditional. These aren’t nude-coloured pieces to sit comfortably under your clothes, they’re show-em-off lingerie from start to finish.
The film is very NSFW – but for its pure strangeness we think it’s worth a watch.
What do you think of Penelope Cruz’s latest L’Agent film – fun or over-the-top?
Image: Penelope Cruz for L’Agent.